AFL-CIO Threatens NFL Owners Over Lockout

The chance of NFL football owners locking out the players next year has the AFL-CIO up in arms, The Hill reports. The NFL Players Association is an affiliate of the labor union organization.

The NFL season began Thursday, and AFL-CIO leaders sent a letter to owners Monday criticizing them for taking a “hard-line” stance in negotiations with the players.

"As leaders of the AFL-CIO, ... we are troubled by the prospect of significant job losses off the field and a spiraling impact on communities if the owners lock out the players and force cancellation of games," AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and other top officials wrote in the letter.

They threaten to take their case to Congress, which granted the NFL its anti-trust exemption in 1961. "We will work with the NFLPA to reach out to local elected officials in team cities and members of Congress to inform them of the imminent job losses on lost revenue if NFL owners choose to lock out the players."

The chance of NFL football owners locking out the players next year has the AFL-CIO up in arms, The Hill reports. The NFL Players Association is an affiliate of the labor union organization.The NFL season began Thursday, and AFL-CIO leaders sent a letter to owners Monday...